WPEO (1020

kHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one h ...

) is a daytime-only

AM radio AM broadcasting is radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation (AM) transmissions. It was the first method developed for making audio radio transmissions, and is still used worldwide, primarily for medium wave (also known as "AM band") transmi ...

station

licensed A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...

Peoria, Illinois Peoria ( ) is the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and the largest city on the Illinois River. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 113,150. It is the principal city of the Peoria Metropolitan Area in Centr ...

. It is owned by WPEO Radio Foundation, Inc., and it

simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of simultaneous broadcast) is the broadcasting of programmes/programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simult ...

s a

Christian talk and teaching Christian radio is a Christian media radio format that focus on programming with a Christian message. Many such broadcasters play contemporary Christian music, though many programs include sermons, radio dramas, as well as news and talk pro ...

radio format A radio format or programming format (not to be confused with broadcast programming) describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. The radio format emerged mainly in the United States in the 1950s, at a time when radio was compelle ...

with co-owned WPEO-FM 98.3 FM in Farmer City, Illinois. The

radio studio A recording studio is a specialized facility for sound recording, mixing, and audio production of instrumental or vocal musical performances, spoken words, and other sounds. They range in size from a small in-home project studio large en ...

s and offices are just south of Illinois Central College in

East Peoria, Illinois East Peoria is a city in Tazewell County, Illinois, United States. The population was 23,402 at the 2010 census. East Peoria is a suburb of Peoria and is part of the Peoria, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area, located across the Illinois Ri ...

. By day, WPEO is powered at 1,000

watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Wa ...

s non-directional. But because

1020 AM The following radio stations broadcast on AM frequency 1020 kHz: 1020 AM is a clear-channel U.S. frequency. KDKA Pittsburgh and KVNT Eagle River, Alaska, share Class A status of 1020 AM. In Argentina * LRA58 in Rio Mayo, Chubut * LRJ ...

is a clear channel frequency reserved for Class A KDKA

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, WPEO must

sign off A sign is an object, quality, event, or entity whose presence or occurrence indicates the probable presence or occurrence of something else. A natural sign bears a causal relation to its object—for instance, thunder is a sign of storm, or ...

at sunset to avoid interference. The

and

transmitter In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which is applied to ...

are on Highview Road, just south of Illinois Central College in

.Radio-Locator.com/WPEO-AM
/ref> Programming is heard around the clock on two

FM translator A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater (two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or tra ...

s: 97.7 W249CZ and 103.9 W280FA in Peoria, as well as 98.3 WPEO-FM in Farmer City.

History

The station was first on the air from 1946 to 1949 as WMMJ, the second radio station in Peoria after 1470 WMBD. WMMJ played

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s ...

music and broadcast sports, but it had financial difficulties and went off the air. WPEO signed on in August 1950, with its studios in the Jefferson Hotel downtown, and started its

top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "conte ...

format in 1954, competing with 1290 WIRL. During this time, noted

disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music f ...

Harry Harrison was at WPEO as the "Morning Mayor of Peoria" and station manager. In 1959, he left for New York's WMCA, and WPEO switched to

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, o ...

in 1960. In 1970, WPEO was bought by the Pinebrook Foundation, Inc., a Pennsylvania-based non-profit corporation, and switched to a

Christian radio Christian radio is a Christian media radio format that focus on programming with a Christian message. Many such broadcasters play contemporary Christian music, though many programs include sermons, radio dramas, as well as news and talk prog ...

format. , its programming is based on paid time for various national Christian programming sources. It is still restricted to daylight hours to protect

clear-channel station A clear-channel station is an AM radio station in North America that has the highest protection from interference from other stations, particularly concerning night-time skywave propagation. The system exists to ensure the viability of cross-co ...

KDKA in Pittsburgh.

References

External links

* * * *
FCC History Cards for WPEO
Radio stations established in 1946 PEO East Peoria, Illinois PEO 1946 establishments in Illinois PEO {{Illinois-radio-station-stub